Down from the Monastery

So on the way down I took the time to take more pictures of what was going on around me than I did going up. This huge hike is littered with families selling stuff to tourists, from young kids to old ladies. They all have the same lines too, like there may be a business school in a cave off in the back.

"No charge for looking, my friend."

"Come here, let me show you something."

Above is Terry offering the 96th "No thank you" of the trip

It's a bit interesting to consider the logistics of this kind of business. Most of the stuff is mass produced junk from China. I mean, I don't think FedEx ships out this far.

There's a large number of families just hanging out and working the local shop.

And their clothes are interesting as well. This kid has a polo shirt on that really anyone could be wearing. The only difference is this one probably doesn't get washed between wears.


Detail of the rock as its cut away from the mountainside. It's got these cool marbled patterns that you'll see every so often around the hike.

I'm assuming this boy lives up there. I heard him call up and someone reply, then he climbed this 20ft cliff face. And to think, there's some of us who complain about having to walk to school.

The above and the next cost me one Jordanian diner to take. This girl was selling packets of post cards and spotted me with the camera taking pictures. She basically came and charged me, which was alright with me.



In a strange way it was unsettling to see this girl sweeping these perpetually dirty stairs. I mean, as a child I played the same games but for me it this stood largely out of context. On another note, look at the jeans she's wearing. They've got the fake jewel studded patterns distinct to the fashion pandemic across America. Another out of context scene.

While this shot cost me nothing, I did get scolded. The kid said, "No pictures my friend. I am not a museum."
In the distance is the long walk back to the meeting place. At the cliffs is the Treasury, which I will post pictures of in the next post.
Roman ruins.

Detail shot of the entrance archway.
Roman columns and Nabataen ruins in the background.

A close up shot of the Nabataen ruins from a few pictures ago.

Living caves. If you look on the ceilings you can see the marbled texture of the rock.